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Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Welcome to my 100th Follower (BigLee)!... and today some 20/25mm WWII figures for sale.
See them on ebay HERE.

NOTE: The auctions have ended on these without them being sold so they have been broken down into smaller lots and relisted- here is alinkto the German infantry and you can find the rest under "see seller's other items"

It's elements of the Grenadier Guards circa Arnhem and based up for "Rapid Fire".

Believe it or not those "Armorfast" quick-build kits detail up pretty nicely (with some added detailing)...this is the Achilles TD.

And I'm also selling a German Panzer brigade (modeled after PZ BGD 107 from the Arnhem battles)

These are scratchbuilt conversions of a Flame thrower halftrack and a "Drilling" AA halftrack based on basic 251s by Hat (Armorfast kits)

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

A small classic set piece to give me a chance to both parade the troops and to let my son play a few moves. He has been showing some interest in "daddy's real games" so it's getting to be time to introduce slightly more complex rules. We set up this battle today and managed to get in a few turns before his attention moved off to other things.

We used Grant's rules and I let him measure and make the die rolls. He enjoyed calculating the artillery "sleeve" mechanism where figuring out the difference in two D6 rolls involved a lot of finger counting and such.

I'm pretty convinced that gaming helped me resist some of the more destructive aspects of high school when I was a teen, so I'm hoping it can give my son something similar. If not, at least it will give him a reason to blow a bit of that discretionary income he hopefully will have.

But I'm just happy that I will have a regular face-to-face opponent someday, and maybe, just maybe, it will become a splendid life-long hobby for him as it did me.

We did not have my good camera with us today so all these pics were taken with my phone...but at least we recorded it for posterity. I eventually finished the game solo, and it was a victory for the Konigreich der Bleiherzen despite a furious assault and determined end game charge by the Grand Duchess' Cuirassiers....for the Bleiherzeners, some small revenge for being disappointed in their recent attempt to capture the Grand Duchess' coach!

Monday, March 21, 2011

I have a unit of Prussian Kurassiers (Nr2) up on the auction block as I'm continuing to convert to an "all Imaginations" 18th century collection so all Prussians and Austrians are now headed for other homes.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

The battle rages around the beleaguered Coach...the Grolsteiner hussars bravely charge the heavier Freikorp dragoons, and after a violent clash are forced to retreat, (...and retreat into Lead Gardens history as they were sold to another "nation"just yesterday...bon chance my good men!)

...meanwhile Volger's jagers get the worst of a firefight with the coach guard...the Croats doing much execution along with some surprisingly good pot-shooting by the frightened driver of the coach.

...off at the head of the column, the lancers pursue the scattered remains of one of the Konigswald dragoon squadrons...

...and are able to reform just in time to catch the Kuschen hussars in retreat as well. The Poles have earned their pay and their dreaded reputation for pursuit this day!

Down the road, the last squadron of dragoons prepares to hold off a strong force of the Duchess' cuirassiers galloping to the rescue.

...while one cuirassier squadron makes for the coach, the second squadron charges the dragoons formed up on a low rise. In the melee, the cuirassiers are thrown back but the dragoons are out of the fight for the coach.

...and after the jagers fall back from the ridge with heavy losses, it leaves only Volger's dragoons to make an attempt on the coach.

...and they are met by the defending dragoons in another swirling melee that ends in both sides falling back, ending the action.

Volger's men are forced to fall back and given the total losses the raiders sustained, it may be some time before such an attempt on the Duchess is tried again.

...as the coach guard reorganizes, the commander of the coach guard, is heard to say, "Where are those blasted Poles!" ...but it's no matter because the cuirassiers are in contact and pickets are sent off to fetch them back...and the occupants of the coach, (turns out it's the duchess nieces...if the grand dame herself was in the coach she would have her Liebguard present as well) ...can safely proceed.

...the audacious raiders will have to try another day!

And it occurs to me that I really do have to make up some better game markers...those big red and black beads just look too "RPGish" for my 18th century tastes!

Sunday, March 13, 2011

The coach in question...target of the Bleiherzen raiders...gets a four move head start as the die rolls for the Bleiherzen force have them all entering on turn four. The Coach escort gets 24" down the road before the enemy is sighted!

Overview of the fourth turn....the raiders appear!

...and the rear guard of the coach escort appears...

Colnel Volger's Freikorps in their first action, advance smartly to engage the column escort.

The Bleiherzen center moves to block the head of the coulumn, the Kuschen hussars on the left, and 2 squadrons fo the Konigswald Dragoons on the right.

The Grolstein column forms up to the left of the road, leaving the right flank exposed and guarded only by the small party of picked Croat sharpshooters who quickly conceal themselves in a wooded copse along the road.

The Grolstein rearguard moves quickly to cover the right flank.

Volger' Freikorps begins the affair with an exchange of musketry at long range. In this game I give the Croat sharpshooters an extra pip on the die to hit.

In the center the two cavalry forces close the distance in preparation for a charge.

...as the cavalry clash begins in earnest, Volger's Freikorps tops the crest of a small ridge and peppers the column escort with well aimed fire...the jagers are under strict orders not to fire on the coach itself.

Friekorps dragoons move in on the weakly guarded flank of the column and are opposed by the hussars.

meanwhile on the Bleiherzen right, a large body of Grolstein cuirassiers thunders down the road to the rescue.

The cavalry melee is quick and ferocious, and the Grolsteiners get the best of it, sending both of the Bleiherzen squadrons to the rear pursued by the Duchess' Poles.

to be continued...

(...also continuing are some ebay sales of some SYW Austrian cavalry and a fine unit of Hungarian musketeers: LINK and LINK and LINK)

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

A replay of a classic scenario is in the works here at the Lead Gardens. This is the "Wagon Train" scenario from CS Grant, using only cavalry and light infantry units for a change of pace...Klein Krieg at it's best!

First some pics of the grand Duchess' coach and four (castings from Eureka miniatures) led by her Polish Uhlanen coach guard followed by a small detachment of Hussars forming a color party. The coach itself is closely guarded by a picket of 3 picked Red Croat sharpshooters (who have a better hit chance than normal light infantry)...followed by a unit of Grolstein regular dragoons. Following on a turn later is the rest of the Hussar unit.

An overview of the Coach escort column.

In the lead, the Uhlanen mercenaries, (favorites of the Grand Duchess...)

Across the table, Grostein Curaissiers in their start positions...heading to meet the coach column... though they will not move until turn five.

The Bleiherzen ambushing force, is comprised of the newly formed Colonel Volger's Freikorps...

Plus a squadron of the the Kushchen Black Hussars...

and 2 squadrons of the Konigswald Dragoons...

and, an overview of the Bleiherzen right wing who's orders are to block the road and destroy the Grolstein head of coulumn, while Volger's men attack from the flank to capture the coach.